In 2025, fire departments serving Grafton responded to 99 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 66% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
399 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $928K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 80 | — | |
| 2022 | 54 | -32.5% | |
| 2023 | 91 | +68.5% | |
| 2024 | 75 | -17.6% | |
| 2025 | 99 | +32.0% |
For the 21 building fires Grafton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 51 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 19.6% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 15.7% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 7 | 13.7% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Machinery room or area; elevator machinery room | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 6 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 8 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 9 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 23.5% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Grafton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 24 | 47.1% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 19.6% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 5 | 9.8% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 7.8% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 1 | 2.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Grafton departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $3,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Grafton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 7,974 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,100 | 45.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,015 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 829 | 48.8 mi | |
| 1998 | Equipment and vehicle use | 630 | 48.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 612 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 508 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 364 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 360 | 35.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 325 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 280 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 252 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 35.4 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Grafton. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Grafton.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.